International Day of Peace Service at Phoebe Berks

The Phoebe Berks Spiritual Life Committee held their 10th annual observance of the United Nations International Day of Peace in September. In all, over 60 people attended including Phoebe Berks residents, clergy from the local community, and staff and residents from the Phoebe Wyncote campus.

The event began with a morning seminar led by Peter Lems, the Program Director for Education and Advocacy on Iraq and Afghanistan for the American Friends Service Committee and the co-coordinator of the Wage Peace campaign.

The presentation was followed by a free luncheon and lively Q &A discussion.

“We ended the event at the peace pole on the Village Green in a time of silence and prayer,” says Phoebe Berks Chaplain, Rev. Leah Knox. “Someone spontaneously started singing “Let There Be Peace on Earth” and everyone began singing and joined hands in a circle around the peace pole.

“It was a fitting ending to our day together, being reminded of the good work that is being done in the name of peace and our need to join in the efforts of peace and justice in our world,” adds Knox.

The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) is a Quaker organization that promotes lasting peace with justice as a practical expression of faith in action. Drawing on continuing spiritual insights and working with people of many backgrounds, they nurture the seeds of change and respect for human life that transform social relations and systems.

The United Nations’ International Day of Peace provides an opportunity for individuals, organizations and nations to create practical acts of Peace on a shared date. Its intent is to mark the individual and collective progress toward building Cultures of Peace and serve as a reminder of a permanent commitment to Peace, above all interests and differences of any kind.